LIVE by Example

Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm.  (Dan 6:3)

In my previous post I talked about the impact Jesus has had on the world.  How He lived that example.  There are a number of other people in the bible we can learn from, here are a few:

·         Joseph didn’t give up despite being sold into slavery by his bothers, being sent to prison after being falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife, and being forgotten by the butler until Pharaoh had a dream. (Gen 37-41)

·         Peter, James, John and the other apostles sat at the feet of Jesus before being instrumental in the growth of the early church. (The 4 Gospels and the Book of Acts)

·         Paul, even with all the difficulties he faced, shared the gospel with the gentiles of his day. (Book of Acts and the Pauline Epistles)

·         Gideon led a small army. (Judges 6-8)

·         Noah built a boat. (Gen 6-8)

·         Moses led God’s people out of Egypt, for 40 years in the wilderness, and to the Promised Land. (Books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy)

·         Nehemiah went home to rebuild a wall. (Book of Nehemiah) 

We know more about some of them than others, some had humble beginnings, and others had positions of influence before they heard God’s call.  All of them displayed faith in what they accomplished for God and gave us examples of how to live our lives.  They also made an impact on those around them and even an impact on the world.

There is one person in particular I would like to highlight as an example and the power a good example can have on the world.  That is the prophet Daniel.

After taking over the nation of Israel, King Nebuchadnezzar had several young men taken to serve in his palace.  Daniel was among these men.  These men were to be indoctrinated and trained in Babylonian affairs of state.

Daniel stood out early on when he made the decision not to defile himself and requested a different diet than was supplied by the king for himself and his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, who we know by their Babylonian names Shadrach, Meshach and, Abed-Nego. (Dan 1:8-12)

Daniel is later able to not only interpret a dream of Nebuchadnezzar; he is able to tell the king what the dream was, which none of the kings other astrologers, magicians, or sorcerers were able to figure out, even under the threat of death for failing to do so.  After Daniel did this, Nebuchadnezzar told him, “Truly Your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and the revealer of secrets, since you could reveal the secret.” (Dan 2:47)

Nebuchadnezzar again praises God after Shadrach, Meshach and, Abed-Nego are saved from the fiery furnace. (Dan 3:28-29)  How’s that for influence?  When the king (a pagan king at that) of a country that took over your own, and took you to serve in his court, is praising your God.

 

Daniel served under several leaders over his lifetime.  First Nebuchadnezzar, then his son Belshazzar mentioned in Daniel 5.  Daniel then served under Darius the Mede when he took over Babylon.  Throughout this time Daniel was blessed by God and continually distinguished himself amongst the other governors and satraps. (Dan 6: 3)

Jealousy from his peers led them to plot against Daniel by manipulating the king which resulted in Daniel being thrown into the lion’s den. (Dan 6:1-17)  After seeing that Daniel survived the night in the lion’s den, Darius had those that had accused Daniel, and their families, thrown into the lion’s den and then honored God (Dan 6:24-27) even decreeing that “men must tremble and fear before the God of Daniel.” (vs. 26)

 

We can see how Daniel had an impact on those around him and set a great example for us by not compromising himself and serving God.  Now, are you ready to take it to another level?

Do you know where the wise men who delivered gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to Jesus in Matthew 2 came from?  It is commonly held that they came from Persia and their knowledge of Hebrew scripture talking of a coming King can be traced back to the time of Daniel in Babylon.

I had heard about the wise men coming because of knowledge they had gained due to Daniel being in Babylon.  But it wasn’t until I received the following text from a friend talking about the wise men that really got me thinking.

“Imagine this… Live your life in such a way that 500 years after you die the weight of your vision motivates the descendants of your peers to travel hundreds of miles to see… THE KING OF KINGS.”

Talk about having an impact!  Living such a strong example that it leads others to act, several generations removed. That will blow your mind when you really think about it.

 

As we serve God, we will impact people’s lives.  In some cases we will witness the affect our actions have, in others we won’t.  But it really doesn’t matter if we see the results or not.  Allowing God to use us is more important than keeping score.  Let God take care of those details because you never know how and where He is going to use what you do to impact others.